In this unique role, a variety of skills are required to excel. To become a chief of staff, you need excellent interpersonal skills and several years of executive-level experience in corporate environments. The position of chief of staff is relatively new to the private sector, and qualifications for the position vary from company to company. However, many companies prefer job applicants with a master's degree in business administration (MBA) or a related field.
Working well as part of a team will help you succeed in your career as chief of staff, especially since you'll have to collaborate with other executives from all departments to implement the CEO's vision. A well-crafted strategy is just words on paper until someone takes the reins and makes it a reality. The implementer translates a strategic vision into action. They strive to innovate and encourage employees to try what has never been done before.
An effective implementer holds teams accountable and moves change forward. They are champions who drive business priorities from conception to completion. Being chief of staff is a multifaceted role that requires a lot of experience in managing people and projects. Anyone who wants this position must have previous experience working in a leadership position, either within their company or at a previous company.
Chiefs of staff act as “air traffic controllers” for an executive and help manage the executive's time and energy. Therefore, the chief of staff is a decisive, creative person with good ideas who can carry out boldly, as well as someone who can allow the different departments of the company to advance their projects. The corporate chief of staff must also facilitate the CEO's work, acting as his “shield and armor”, working as an additional set of eyes and ears for the CEO, and organizing his daily tasks. However, this function goes far beyond merely administrative, given the chief of staff's level of access to important information, the importance of his departmental coordination tasks, and his ability to filter access to the CEO.
Put the power of Prime at your service to find the chief of staff to help you regain your time, your impact and, of course, your best game. In short, the functions of the chief of staff can be summarized as being able to help the CEO in everything he needs, as well as helping the company in general to ensure that everything works in the best possible way, which includes taking all measures to avoid inefficiencies, inconsistencies and possible crises in the company. The role of chief of staff (COS) differs from that of chief operating officer (COO) in that the COS reports directly and primarily to the CEO, not to the board of directors, other executives, or key stakeholders. Reliability is transmitted by the security that the chief of staff gives off, his ability to resolve conflicts and the discretion he can maintain, as mentioned in the previous point.
As chief of staff, you work with many different people within an organization, from the cafeteria to the boardroom. The responsibilities of the chief of staff include collaborating with the CEO and sometimes acting as a delegate. This position began to trend when large technology companies such as Google, Facebook and Uber incorporated new chiefs of staff, but since then it has been adopted by organizations of many other sizes, including tens of thousands of them with between 50 and 500 employees. As chief of staff, you'll work with and report directly to the CEO, conveying messages and ideas from other senior managers to improve the company's internal functions and processes.
If you read other articles that describe the figure of the chief of staff and what it takes to become one, you will most likely realize that the chief of staff is at the service of the CEO, that he holds an influential but second-level position, and that he is essential but not too prominent...
